[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 170 (Tuesday, September 3, 2019)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 45941-45943]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-18939]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 635

RIN 0648-XG955


Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; Amendment 12 to the 2006 
Consolidated Atlantic Highly Migratory Species Fishery Management Plan

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of availability; notice of intent; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: NMFS announces the availability of a scoping document and its 
intent to initiate an amendment to the 2006 Consolidated Highly 
Migratory Species (HMS) Fishery Management Plan (FMP). Given recent 
revisions to the National Standard guidelines and recent NMFS policy 
directives, which aim to improve and streamline fishery management 
procedures to enhance their utility for managers and the public, NMFS 
has determined it is necessary to: Reassess current HMS FMP objectives 
to reflect the changing needs of the HMS fisheries, and potentially 
adopt revised FMP objectives; review stock status determination 
criteria (SDC) for internationally-managed HMS and adopt such criteria, 
rather than continue to apply domestic criteria, which at times differ; 
review the standardized bycatch reporting methodology (SBRM) for 
certain HMS fisheries and update, if necessary; consider triggers for 
initiating allocation reviews for quota-managed HMS stocks and adopt 
such triggers, if appropriate; and consider revising the publication 
date of the annual HMS Stock Assessment and Fishery Evaluation (SAFE) 
Report and adopt such revision. The goal of the scoping document is to 
examine potential options and modify domestic HMS fishery management 
measures to be consistent with the national standards guidelines and 
recent NMFS policy directives, and to request additional information 
and input from consulting parties and the public prior to development 
of Amendment 12 to the 2006 Consolidated Atlantic HMS FMP.

DATES: One webinar will be held on October 9, 2019. See SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION for webinar date and instructions. NMFS requests receipt of 
any comments on the scoping document by November 4, 2019.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on the scoping document, identified 
by NOAA-NMFS-2019-0096, by any of the following methods:
     Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public 
comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal. Go to 
www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=NOAA-NMFS-2019-0096, click the 
``Comment Now!'' icon, complete the required fields, and enter or 
attach your comments.
     Mail: Submit written comments to Rick Pearson, NMFS/SF1, 
263 13th Avenue South, Saint Petersburg, FL 33701.
    Instructions: Comments sent by any other method, to any other 
address or individual, or received after the end of the comment period, 
may not be considered by NMFS. All comments received are a part of the 
public record and generally will be posted for public viewing on 
www.regulations.gov without change. All personal identifying 
information (e.g., name, address, etc.), confidential business 
information, or otherwise sensitive information submitted voluntarily 
by the sender will be publicly accessible. NMFS will accept anonymous 
comments (enter ``N/A'' in the required fields if you wish to remain 
anonymous).
    Copies of the scoping document and supporting documents are 
available from the HMS Management Division website at: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/amendment-12-2006-consolidated-hms-fishery-management-plan-msa-guidelines-and-national or constituents can 
contact Rick Pearson by phone at 727-824-5399 or Sarah McLaughlin at 
978-281-9260 for hard copies.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rick Pearson at 727-824-5399 or Sarah 
McLaughlin at 978-281-9260.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 
(Magnuson-Stevens Act) requires that any FMP or FMP amendment be 
consistent with ten National Standards.

[[Page 45942]]

In 2016, NMFS revised the National Standard guidelines to improve and 
streamline the guidelines to enhance their utility for managers and the 
public and provide flexibility in meeting current Magnuson-Stevens Act 
mandates (81 FR 71858, October 18, 2016). The final rule included a 
recommendation that FMP objectives should be reassessed on a regular 
basis to reflect the changing needs of the fishery over time. Although 
no time frame was prescribed, the National Standard guidelines 
indicated that NMFS should provide notice to the public of the expected 
schedule for review.
    The National Standard guidelines final rule also indicated that, 
for stocks managed under international agreement, NMFS may use the SDC 
defined by the relevant international body (e.g., the International 
Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas). Although the 
National Standard guidelines final rule does not require a review of 
international SDC, it allows NMFS to consider their appropriateness and 
applicability.
    The Magnuson-Stevens Act requires that any FMP, with respect to any 
fishery, establish an SBRM to assess the amount and type of bycatch 
occurring in a fishery. On January 19, 2017, NMFS published a final 
rule (82 FR 6317) to interpret and provide guidance on this Magnuson-
Stevens Act requirement. Specifically, each FMP must identify the 
required procedure or procedures that constitute the SBRM for a fishery 
and conduct an analysis that explains how the SBRM meets the purposes 
described in the Magnuson-Stevens Act. With the changes in the SBRM 
guidelines, NMFS has determined that it is necessary to consider 
amending the HMS FMP to update SBRMs for some fisheries and to add 
fisheries for which SBRMs are not yet described (including tuna 
greenstick fishery, swordfish buoy gear fishery, and recreational 
speargun fishery).
    On February 23, 2017, NMFS issued Fisheries Allocation Policy 
Directive 01-119 (https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/laws-and-policies/fisheries-management-policy-directives), which describes a 
mechanism to ensure that fisheries allocations are periodically 
evaluated. The policy and directives establish three steps in an 
allocation review process, with the first step occurring if a review is 
triggered. Categories of triggers that can be used to initiate an 
allocation review include: Public interest, time, or indicators. The 
policy directive also requires the identification of one or more 
triggers for each fishery with a quota allocation that meets the 
definition contained in the revised policy directive. The scoping 
document for Draft Amendment 12 to the 2006 Consolidated Atlantic HMS 
FMP begins the process for considering allocation triggers for quota-
managed HMS.
    Finally, the HMS SAFE report is a public document that provides a 
summary of scientific information concerning the most recent biological 
condition of stocks, stock complexes, and marine ecosystems, essential 
fish habitat (EFH), and the social and economic condition of 
recreational and commercial HMS fishing interests, fishing communities, 
and the fish processing industries. The Magnuson-Stevens Act specifies 
that SAFE reports summarize, on a periodic basis, the best scientific 
information available concerning the past, present, and possible future 
condition of the stocks, EFH, marine ecosystems, and fisheries being 
managed under Federal regulation. In 2008, NMFS published a final rule 
for Amendment 2 to the 2006 Consolidated HMS FMP (73 FR 40657, July 15, 
2008) that, among other things, required the publication of the HMS 
SAFE report by the fall of each year. The scoping document for Draft 
Amendment 12 begins the process for considering adjusting the 
publication date of the HMS SAFE report to account for unexpected 
delays, while remaining compliant with Magnuson-Stevens Act 
requirements.
    In this scoping document, NMFS begins the process of re-assessing 
HMS FMP objectives, considering international SDCs for HMS managed 
under international agreement, updating HMS FMP SBRM to include 
fisheries which are not yet described, considering allocation criteria 
for quota-managed HMS, and adjusting the timing for publication of the 
annual HMS SAFE Report.

Request for Comments

    NMFS requests additional information and comments from consulting 
parties and the public on the scoping document. The document includes a 
summary of the anticipated purpose and need of the FMP amendment and 
the potential environmental, social, and economic impacts of 
conservation and management of some potential options. The scoping 
document is available online at the HMS website: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/action/amendment-12-2006-consolidated-hms-fishery-management-plan-msa-guidelines-and-national. One webinar will 
be held (see Table 1 for webinar time and instructions) to provide the 
opportunity for public comment. These comments will be used to assist 
in the development of the upcoming amendment to the 2006 Consolidated 
Atlantic HMS FMP.

  Table 1--Time and Instructions of the Scoping Webinar and Conference
                                  Call
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             Date                      Time         Webinar instructions
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October 9, 2019...............  2:00-4:00 p.m....  Link: https://noaanmfs-events1.webex.com/noaanmfs-events1/onstage/g.php?MTID=ea75b63983365ec291964d9bc1a6fb968 b968.
                                                   Event Password: NOAA.
                                                   Dial In: 888-843-
                                                    6167.
                                                   Passcode: 3439062.
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    The public is reminded that NMFS expects participants at public 
scoping meetings and on conference calls or webinars to conduct 
themselves appropriately. At the beginning of the webinar and 
conference call, a representative of NMFS will explain the ground rules 
(e.g., all comments are to be directed to the Agency; attendees will be 
called to give their comments in the order in which they registered to 
speak; each attendee will have an equal amount of time to speak; and 
attendees should not interrupt one another). A NMFS representative will 
attempt to structure the webinar and conference call so that all 
attending members of the public will be able to comment if they so 
choose, regardless of the controversial nature of the subject matter. 
If attendees do not respect the ground rules they will be asked to 
leave the webinar or conference call.
    NMFS anticipates that Draft Amendment 12 to the 2006 Consolidated 
HMS FMP will be available in 2020 and that Final

[[Page 45943]]

Amendment 12 will be available in 2021.

    Dated: August 28, 2019.
Jennifer M. Wallace,
Acting Director, Office of Sustainable Fisheries, National Marine 
Fisheries Service.
[FR Doc. 2019-18939 Filed 8-30-19; 8:45 am]
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